The moment Green was tackled and taken away, Lex had two thoughts: save or not save?
He instantly chose the former and rushed out at an extremely fast speed, chasing in the direction of Green's voice.
Only then did the Enforcers team and Bishop Millet react. When they turned around, they saw Bearded Man Sklef put down his rifle and shake his head.
"He's too fast, I can't lock on."
"What was that? A beast?" Bishop Millet asked.
Sklef shook his head: "No, there are no such beasts in Damir Port, at least not in the three years I've been here."
"Bishop, should we help that hunter?" Thick-lipped Roldor clutched the '2-04' in his hand, eager to try.
Bishop Millet pondered for a moment, then shook his head: "No, we can't catch up, and it's not a good idea to split up our forces now."
At this moment, they saw a flash of fire suddenly appear in the jungle far away, followed by muffled, indistinct explosions.
"It seems Mr. Rayleigh is a Pyromaniac," Roldor mused.
At this moment, Lex was using the light provided by the high-altitude exploding fireball to locate Green.
He chased after him for two reasons.
Green was also a 'Contactee', and if anything happened to him, no one knew if it would worsen the curse.
Furthermore, Lex considered that he would be traveling more on the Sea in the future, and the Storm Church had churches and personnel stationed on most Sea Islands. He might have to deal with the Storm Church in the future, so Lex wanted to leave a good impression on them if possible.
By now, Green's cries could no longer be heard. Lex thought for a moment, and fire suddenly jetted from the bottom of his shoes. Flames erupted from beneath his feet, propelling Lex to 'leap' into the air. He casually threw a fireball, creating a second explosion.
With the help of the firelight, he immediately noticed a strange figure near a patch of bushes to the west below, grabbing Green and covering the talkative man's mouth with one hand.
Lex immediately pressed one hand back, spewing flames from his palm, adjusting his direction, and diving towards that area.
He drew his katana, ''Devil May Cry'', and let orange-red flames erupt from the blade. After the flames erupted, they contracted in layers, eventually leaving a layer of dark red plasma around the blade.
Accelerate!
A muffled thud echoed in the sky.
Green, who was on the grass, only saw a flash of fire like a meteor descending from the sky. A low howl echoed in his ears, and dark red seemed to surge at the corner of his eye. Then, the hand covering his mouth fell powerlessly.
He quickly rolled a few times on the ground, rolling several meters, before getting up.
He saw Lex standing up from behind the monster, shaking off the dark red from his blade. After the blade, which had turned red from heating, returned to normal, he sheathed it.
Looking at the monster, its head had been sliced off, and the cross section of its neck was unusually smooth, gleaming with black light, like a smoothly cut black gem.
For a few seconds, Green's mind was blank.
Then a thought surfaced: I'm saved.
Next was the second: Mr. Rayleigh is so strong.
Then the third, the fourth, thoughts bubbled up and appeared one after another like air bubbles.
Lex shook his hand, casting a ball of fire that landed on a nearby bush, starting a bonfire. He used the firelight to examine the monster that had taken Green. The monster looked like a skinny man, and it even had clothes covered in mud and grass.
It had dry, straw-like yellow hair, but no eyes or nose, only a terrifyingly large mouth.
Its mouth was full of sharp teeth, and its jaw muscles were extremely developed. Lex lightly touched its open mouth with his katana, and the large, tooth-filled mouth snapped shut with a soft 'da' sound.
Then the muscles slowly relaxed, and the mouth opened again.
Looking at its body, its skin was grayish-green, covered with large and small dark brown patches. This was very similar to the 'mold spots' on Contactees like Lex and his companions.
Its body and limbs were very thin, practically skin and bones, but its palms and soles were unusually large, and it had yellow, hard, hooked nails.
The strangest thing was its large, round belly, like a pregnant woman's.
"Mr. Rayleigh, what is this?" Green cautiously approached, pointing a revolver at the now-dead monster.
"I don't know." Lex shook his head, "But I know we need to go back."
A moment later, they reunited with Bishop Millet and the others. Lex described the monster, and Millet and the Enforcers all looked bewildered, clearly unsure of what it was.
"Guard!"
Hana exclaimed: "I saw what Mr. Rayleigh described in the temple murals. From the depiction in the murals, those things are the temple's guards."
"It seems that through some ritual, the dead are awakened and transformed into monsters like the one just now."
Bishop Millet frowned: "It seems the evil lurking in that temple is reawakening. First the curse, now the guards. I'm very concerned about the third coffin Miss Hana mentioned. Whatever is inside should be the culprit behind all of this."
"Then we need to pick up the pace," Lex said, looking at everyone.
When the moonlight became very bright, Lex and his companions stood before an irregular pit, with wooden pegs and ropes beside it. Hana pointed to the dark pit and said: "This is it. Going down from here will lead to the temple."
"Roldor, take two men down first. Kill anything that moves, whether it's a beast or whatever," Bishop Millet decisively ordered.
The Captain of the Punishers, who controlled the sealed artifact, immediately picked two team members. They used the tools beside the pit to slide down. After reaching the ground, they first observed their surroundings with a storm lantern, then gave the 'safe' signal.
Lex and the others then entered the underground. On the ground, by the light of the lanterns, Lex saw a cave not far ahead. Wind blew from the cave, carrying a cold and damp scent.
Hana pointed to the cave and said: "We must go in through here."
Millet then gave the Captain of the Punishers a wink. Thick-lipped Roldor twisted the dial on the sealed artifact to position 1, then drew out the staff end. The roughly 30-centimeter-long staff became a hilt, and behind the hilt was a gray, chilling spiritual blade.
"Follow me." Roldor took the lead, rushing into the cave without preparation. Two team members followed him in. A moment later, the roars of monsters echoed from deep within the cave. Electricity flickered in the darkness, fireballs flew, and blade light burst forth.
It was Lex's first time witnessing the Enforcers' combat, and he felt their fighting style could be summarized in one word: reckless!